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surfmonkey01's review
4.0
"Die Hard" in a mock Disneyland, if John Mclane were undercover Special Forces. Written by the awesome Greg Rucka. How could it be anything less than a blast?
king0fstl's review
3.0
Generic thriller that picked up at the end. The main character was completely forgettable, but the overall story was interesting enough and the villain was more fun to watch than the her.
loonyboi's review
3.0
Alpha is an enjoyable book. It's a great little novel to read on an airplane. Calling it "Die Hard in Disneyland" is pretty much a perfect description.
My one complaint is that it's almost too straightforward. There's no real shockers here, and even the ultimate plot that comes out in the end is not particularly surprising.
Also, the fact that it's labeled, "A Jad Bell Novel" implies we can look forward to more books featuring this protagonist. Which is fine, because as I said, I liked the book, but somewhat surprising, because Jad Bell is actually a pretty boring guy. The book moves so quickly that he isn't really given a whole lot of time to develop as a character. I'm not sure I could name anything interesting about him that isn't because of the people around him. His family seems to be the one interesting bit we're told about here, and he's left to stand as a competent military guy, but not much else.
But again, I liked the book, and recommend it to those looking for a nice distraction.
My one complaint is that it's almost too straightforward. There's no real shockers here, and even the ultimate plot that comes out in the end is not particularly surprising.
Also, the fact that it's labeled, "A Jad Bell Novel" implies we can look forward to more books featuring this protagonist. Which is fine, because as I said, I liked the book, but somewhat surprising, because Jad Bell is actually a pretty boring guy. The book moves so quickly that he isn't really given a whole lot of time to develop as a character. I'm not sure I could name anything interesting about him that isn't because of the people around him. His family seems to be the one interesting bit we're told about here, and he's left to stand as a competent military guy, but not much else.
But again, I liked the book, and recommend it to those looking for a nice distraction.
jshel10's review
5.0
Thought this was fantastic. Read it in a day. Rucka has flown under the radar as a novelist for too long - his Kodiak series is one of the best in crime fiction, but probably one of the least appreciated - but this is a top-notch thriller that deserves a huge audience. The amusement park setting is great, Jad Bell is a terrific hero and the pacing is brilliant. A thriller in every way.
helpfulsnowman's review
3.0
Not my favorite Rucka book, but not a bad read either.
This does contain one of my absolute favorite action movie moments, which is the part where two dudes in an office have this argument regarding embedded agents (paraphrased):
"If those men make a move, the terrorists will start shooting! The hostages won't have a chance!
"Those men are the only chance those hostages have!"
I feel that, as a society, we should make a decision regarding this situation now, in the sober light of day, before our friends or daughters or whoever are revealed to be one of the kidnapped people. It comes up often enough in books and movies that we're going to feel like real assholes if we don't think it through ahead of time here.
I'm putting my vote in the Let's Go For It camp. If these pieces of entertainment have taught me anything, it's that there's always one hotshot guy on the team who can't hold back and is going to start shooting anyway. Or there's one terrorist on THAT team who feels the need to continue doing his terrorist stuff, but also feels like this would be a good time to try and cop a feel off one of the hostages or something. That's always bizarre too. Isn't launching a nuclear missile enough? Do you really need to also grab someone's ass? And then the ass grabber always gets very incensed when the terrorist leader says something like, "Hey, what the hell man? Let's focus on this whole nuclear missile situation." Seriously, the ass grabber acts offended, like the leader guy was telling him that he wasn't going to be allowed to have a gun anymore, or that his menacing glare was now forbidden.
Anyway, this had almost nothing to do with Alpha. I'd recommend one of the Atticus Kodiak books first. But if you're into those, Alpha will do you just fine.
This does contain one of my absolute favorite action movie moments, which is the part where two dudes in an office have this argument regarding embedded agents (paraphrased):
"If those men make a move, the terrorists will start shooting! The hostages won't have a chance!
"Those men are the only chance those hostages have!"
I feel that, as a society, we should make a decision regarding this situation now, in the sober light of day, before our friends or daughters or whoever are revealed to be one of the kidnapped people. It comes up often enough in books and movies that we're going to feel like real assholes if we don't think it through ahead of time here.
I'm putting my vote in the Let's Go For It camp. If these pieces of entertainment have taught me anything, it's that there's always one hotshot guy on the team who can't hold back and is going to start shooting anyway. Or there's one terrorist on THAT team who feels the need to continue doing his terrorist stuff, but also feels like this would be a good time to try and cop a feel off one of the hostages or something. That's always bizarre too. Isn't launching a nuclear missile enough? Do you really need to also grab someone's ass? And then the ass grabber always gets very incensed when the terrorist leader says something like, "Hey, what the hell man? Let's focus on this whole nuclear missile situation." Seriously, the ass grabber acts offended, like the leader guy was telling him that he wasn't going to be allowed to have a gun anymore, or that his menacing glare was now forbidden.
Anyway, this had almost nothing to do with Alpha. I'd recommend one of the Atticus Kodiak books first. But if you're into those, Alpha will do you just fine.
bbabyok's review against another edition
4.0
Greg Rucka is a strong writer that always hits the right beats to make a fast moving interesting story. Alpha is no different and it's one heck of a ride. Recommended.
susbro's review against another edition
4.0
Die Hard at Disneyland is pretty much what you need to know about this book. Enjoyable read.
mschlat's review
4.0
Die Hard in Disney World, with about the level of excitement you would expect and more nuance. I've been iffy on Rucka's recent work, but this is a quick moving thriller that's high on the "$#!? hits the fan" appeal factor.
jefffrane's review
4.0
Typically fast-moving thriller for Rucka, with a new lead character. It reminds me more of his Atticus Kodiak books than the Queen and Country series, which is just what I was hoping for.
bdorf's review against another edition
4.0
Great action, a bit shallow on the character development, and a slightly underwhelming ending. Also slightly cliched, I was expecting a little more from Rucka. Reads like a spec script for a Jason Bourne-style film, which is not necessarily a bad thing I guess. I would totally watch this movie.